Engadget
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Intel's Project Alloy VR headset is dead
Intel won't be releasing its Project Alloy VR headset platform anytime this year -- in fact, it won't be releasing the technology at all. The tech giant has officially killed the initiative, which aimed to provide partner companies an open reference design for their own standalone VR devices. Intel …
Virtual RealityNintendo rolls out two-step authentication for online accounts
Nintendo now supports two-factor verification to its Nintendo Accounts. This adds another layer of security by requiring codes generated from the Google Authenticator app, though it comes years later than most other gaming platforms.<p>Sony added two-factor to the PlayStation Network a year ago using …
SecurityUber's new chief says the company is paying for its bad rep
New company chief Dara Khosrowshahi has sent out an email to his employees about London, and it shows that the company might truly be under a different kind of leadership now. One that doesn't sound like it'll encourage "hustlin'" and overlook bad behavior, such as obtaining rape victims' medical …
Climbkhana: Ken Block explains Pikes Peak assault in latest Gymkhana video
<i>By Carter Jung</i><p><i>Climbkhana</i> is clever. And no, not because it's a portmanteau. Rather it's how Ken Block and his merry band of Hoonigan Media Machine misfits took something the internet clearly loves, hooning, and paired it with a picturesque mountain tied to one of the oldest motorsport events in …
Sports CarsFitness app company settles with FTC for nearly $1 million
If you're going to create a mobile app that offers monetary rewards for meeting fitness goals, you should probably make sure you back your promises up. The Pact fitness app offers users a way to incentivize workouts by charging a fee when users miss their fitness goals. If goals are met, the app …
21st CenturyLenovo’s leaked 25th-anniversary ThinkPad sports a familiar look
The latest ThinkPad that Lenovo brought to CES back in January had a notably sleeker, more modern appearance than the line's traditional boxy black look. But it kept a couple features, like the red TrackPoint nub and 45-degree ThinkPad logo, that have become trademarks of the beloved brand since it …
TabletsApple extends iTunes movie rentals to 48 hours
It used to be that when you rented a movie from Apple's iTunes service, you'd have 24 hours to finish watching it. You could start streaming the rental within 30 days of purchase, of course. Just a couple of weeks after Apple made 4K an affordable option, the company has doubled the rental time to …
Apple TVTesla might build convenience stores at its charging stations
Tesla plans to roll out more electric supercharging stations this year, especially in big cities, which should double the size of its network. But even with more places to juice up your Tesla, it still takes far longer to refill an EV than gassing up a fossil fuel-powered car. But the electric …
Electric VehiclesVerizon will give rural customers more time to find new providers
Recently, Verizon sent letters to around 8,500 customers living in rural areas that informed them their service would be cut off as of October 17th. Verizon claimed that those customers were using enough data while roaming outside of the Verizon network that the company's costs exceeded the fees …
InternetTarget expands next-day delivery service to eight more cities
Target continues to try and outcompete digital retailer and competitor, Amazon. The red bullseye-logo company has been testing its own Prime Pantry-like delivery service for a few months now, offering faster times than Amazon. Dubbed Restock, Target's offering expanded to customers Denver and …
AmazonMercedes-Benz spends $1 billion to make EVs at Alabama plant
Like most auto makers these days, Mercedes-Benz is investing in electric vehicles in a big way. The Daimler-owned company is fast-tracking all of its models to an electric future by 2022. It has also been showing off a slate of EV models, like the Generation EQ concept car, slated for production in …
Electric VehiclesThe iPhone 8’s glass back costs way more to repair than the front
Over the last couple of weeks, the price of AppleCare+ has gone up for Plus model iPhones and screen repair for the 6s and newer models has gotten $20 more expensive. However, while screen replacements for phones under AppleCare+ warranty are still $29, that's not the case for replacing the back …
IPhone 8HTC gives Vive developers all app revenue for the rest of 2017
Now that HTC is all-in on Vive headsets and letting Google deal with its Pixel smartphone business, it has to deal with another reality: The public still isn't exactly sold on VR. To keep sales momentum going, it has announced a promotion aimed at attracting Vive app developers and keeping existing …
Virtual RealityApple Watch Series 3 first look: So far, no LTE problems
The Apple Watch Series 3 started shipping today, and our definitive review is still in the works. In the meantime, we wanted to give you a taste of what life is like with the company's first LTE-connected watch, so when we got it in for review, we said <i>eff it:</i> let's use nothing but the Watch all …
SmartwatchesSome brave soul volunteered for a completely robotic dental surgery
A robot just implanted two 3D-printed teeth into a woman's mouth all on its own. The procedure took place recently in China and the researchers who developed it hope it can help the country's dentist shortage problem, reports the <i>South China Morning Post</i>.<p>Prior to the surgery, the robot was oriented …
RobotsGoogle Daydream's web-browsing features surface in Chrome
At Google's I/O developer conference in May, the company announced that it was working on a VR version of Chrome that could work in Daydream. Well, Chrome development team member François Beaufort announced on Google+ today that the first set of features are now ready for you to test out.<p>Through …
GoogleWhy Equifax’s error wasn’t hiring someone with a music degree
In the wake of the Equifax breach, a significant number of people lost their minds this week upon discovering that one of its newly-deposed security executives has a degree in music composition. Despite 14 years of experience as a security professional in other companies, Susan Mauldin was mocked …
Equifax'PUBG’ studio isn't happy about ‘Fornite: Battle Royale’
Epic Games' cartoony horde game <i>Fortnite</i> is still in Steam Early Access, but the studio recently announced that a free-to-play version of the game would come out for free next week... and it looks a lot like another really popular game. <i>Fortnite: Battle Royale</i>'s gameplay doesn't just closely resemble</i> …
Game DevelopmentAmazon may deliver Chipotle and Five Guys right to your front door
Amazon's been getting into the food game for awhile now. After all, they've introduced Amazon Fresh and drive-through grocery pickup. And oh yeah, they acquired Whole Foods earlier this year. Clearly Amazon is serious about the food business; they've established their presence on the grocery side, …
AmazonFreshHow Kevin Durant’s attempt to clap back at trolls backfired
What does an NBA champion and Finals MVP have in common with Taylor Swift? In the case of the Golden State Warriors' Kevin Durant, it's that internet trolls love calling them snakes. Swift earned that label last year after a feud with Kim Kardashian and husband Kanye West; for Durant, that scorn …
Kevin DurantUS-Europe privacy agreement passes its yearly review
If you haven't ever heard of Privacy Shield, it's an agreement between the US and the EU. It allows companies that store personal data of people who reside in the EU (such as Facebook) on servers in the US, all while adhering to European standards for privacy protection. It replaced Safe Harbor …
PrivacyAll Xbox 360 ‘Halo’ titles are now playable on the Xbox One
Microsoft had a fun announcement this week. All Xbox 360-era <i>Halo</i> games, <i>Halo 3</i>, <i>Halo 3: ODST</i>, <i>Halo 4</i> and <i>Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary,</i> are now backwards compatible for the Xbox One and Xbox One S. (<i>Halo: Reach</i> was already backwards compatible with the system). They aren't yet playable yet on the …
HaloThe best cheap compact camera
<i>By Ben Keough</i><p><i>This post was done in partnership with The Wirecutter, a buyer's guide to the best technology. When readers choose to buy The Wirecutter's independently chosen editorial picks, it may earn affiliate commissions that support its work. Read the full article here.</i><p>After 42 hours of …
CamerasEU withheld a study that shows piracy doesn't hurt sales
In 2013, the European Commission ordered a €360,000 ($430,000) study on how piracy affects sales of music, books, movies and games in the EU. However, it never ended up showing it to the public except for one cherry-picked section. That's possibly because the study concluded that there was no …
Internet'Destiny 2' factions will reward you with powerful discount weapons
If you've been playing <i>Destiny 2</i> for a while, you probably know the fate of "the city". What's set to follow -- as I try not to spoil anything-- is the return of factions. We all love some good in-game tribal battles, and the shooter's Faction rallies will kick things off on September 26, at the …
Destiny 2The West Coast is finally getting an earthquake early warning system
On September 19th, 1985, Mexico City was devastated by an 8.0 magnitude earthquake that killed as many as 30,000 people and leveled buildings across the city, including the 12-story Hospital Juárez, one of the oldest hospital institutions in Mexico. In response, the government set about creating …
Earthquakes'Vincent' AI transforms your rough sketch into a Van Gogh
Prisma made AI art style transfer fun for the masses, but a new machine learning app has much bigger ambitions. Applying its vast knowledge of art from the Renaissance to today, "Vincent" can take your simple sketch and transform it a finished painting influenced by Van Gogh, Cézanne and Picasso. …
Machine LearningThe iPhone 8 is technically a gigabit LTE phone
At first blush, iFixit's tech autopsy on the iPhone 8 didn't reveal anything particularly notable, besides some different screws and a way to remove the glass backing. So far, so meh. But then when it came to the laundry list of chips and modems all crammed inside Apple's latest smartphones, we …
IPhone 8The Engadget Podcast Ep 43: Hits, misses and leaks
If last week's episode was overwhelmingly about Apple, this week's episode includes some partial respite, in the form of another tech titan: Google. For the first half of this episode, senior editor Chris Velazco and I recap his review of the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus, which posted on Tuesday. We also …
Google Play MusicApple only allows streaming, not download, of upgraded 4K movies
One of the most pleasant surprises out of last week's Apple event was the announcement that purchased iTunes movies would be automatically upgraded to 4K for free. Well, it turns out it's not actually that simple. A support document from Apple tells us that users will not be able to download 4K …
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